Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Running With a Chronic Illness

Life has thrown my way another curve ball. Last Wednesday I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. Celiac Disease is an auto-immune disease that destroys the small intestines, causing the body to attack itself (resulting in all kinds of crazy symptoms and other diseases), and resulting in malabsorption from years of eating gluten. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye, and cross-contaminated oats. Gluten can be found in breads, soups, cosmetics, lotions, vitamins, it’s here, there, and everywhere! I have quickly learned that not all chicken breasts are created equal! Once you stop eating gluten, the body can begin to repair itself. Although it may take years, diet is the only way to control this disease. 


While my symptoms have been debilitating at times and has greatly impacted my running this winter, I am trying my best to not only run whenever possible, but rebuild my strength and be the best runner possible. I am responsible for the quality of my life, I need to start listening and responding to my body. If I need to walk so I walk. I feel that I have the strength to run, then I will run. Regardless of what my Type-A personality expects from me I have to remember that I am competing against myself and only myself. 

I will write more about my experience being a G-Free runner and all the new foods that I try in future posts.  

Are you a G-Free runner? Are you a runner with chronic illness? How has chronic illness affected your running? Comments as always are appreciated!

Remember wherever you go, there you are. 

2 comments:

  1. Malinda (the slower half of TWINS RUN in our family) lives with gastroparesis (delayed stomach emptying) which cause debilitating stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. She continues to run whenever possible and just started to share her experiences on our blog. Looking forward to following your journey, too! :-)

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    1. Malinda I believe that all of life's little bumps such as a chronic illness makes us stronger people. I am sure that you are a stronger person as a result of your illness. Best of luck to you on your journey!!

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